


Tide

by Hakuyu



Category: Tokyo Ghoul
Genre: Day At The Beach, F/M, Fluff, Mention of blood, Slice of Life, Unrequited Love
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-20
Updated: 2019-07-20
Packaged: 2020-07-09 06:27:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,753
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19883119
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Hakuyu/pseuds/Hakuyu
Summary: Ui and Hairu are taking a trip to the beach.





	Tide

"Look, Koori! A shooting star! See? May I make a wish now? "Hairu's voice mingled with the gentle sound of the waves.  
Ui put his head on his neck and blinked against the glistening sun.  
Several times the radiant blue of the sky blurred before his burning eyes. Like a random, white brushstroke on a canvas dipped in blue paint, the condensation trail of an airplane appeared on the horizon.  
A long, lonely cloud.  
"This isn't a shooting star. It's the middle of the day anyway. That's just a contrail from an airplane. That’s really it," Ui lowered his head again and looked his partner straight in the face. Hairu smiled at him.  
"But," she said, "it looks like a shooting star. It’s like someone froze the sky when it was about to fall. You're way too unromantic, Koori!" And you are way too naive, Hairu. Naïve as she was much too cheerful and inattentive in meetings, as if the discussed would not decide about life and death.  
Naïve as she accidentally spoke to him first name in front of his colleagues.  
Naïve as she wanted to see the sea at all costs.  
Hairu wasn't naive when she killed. She could kill mercilessly.  
She could dip her whole world in red and yet such thoughts came to her at the sight of the bright blue sky. A shooting star. That she could still see this grey, red speckled world with such eyes...  
Ui shook his head. No, today he didn't want to think of such things. Not today. There was no red blood today. There were so many other colors. There was sky-blue and sea-blue and sand-white. Hairu-pink. A warm breeze swept over her, pulling the strands of her hair. Her chin-length strands blew around her cheeks, her mouth. The sea roared. Hairu's eyes widened, as if out of surprise by the sudden wind, the sudden sounds.  
But they shone as they always did when Hairu was happy. Her long, white dress bulged in the wind. She just managed to put her hand on her straw hat before it blew off her head.  
The white ribbon tied around the brim fluttered. When Hairu stroked her hair back with a gentle gesture, it was as if she was lifting a swirling curtain in front of her laughter. The breeze calmed down as suddenly as it had come.  
The sea was still roaring. But for a moment the whole world seemed to have become a little quieter.  
"Then I'm just unromantic", Ui muttered, more to himself than to Hairu.  
She had already found a new topic: "I was scared! The wind is pretty strong," she laughed and sorted out her mixed-up strands of hair. She probably hadn't heard him at all. But he was unromantic. He just wanted to put that fact on record one more time. For himself. For no particular reason.  
But he just wanted to stress it again. Period.  
"We are at the sea. The wind is always a bit stronger here," Ui explained.  
"This is totally exciting, don't you think?"  
Well. Wind was wind. And yet Ui felt himself nodding. Hairu had meanwhile put her head in the neck, waving towards the sky.  
"Bye, bye plane! Get home safely!" Then she turned back to him. "Let's go on, Koori, shall we?", Hairu grabbed his wrist and gently pulled it. Heat flashed through his arm like an electric shock. Ui almost withdrew his hand. But he held still. Quietly. Let himself be led by Hairu, getting carried away step by step. His feet sank into the hot sand, his steps feeling strangely awkward.  
The underground sagged. If one had to fight here, one would have a considerable disadvantage due to the lack of stability.  
Except Arima - such an environment was certainly not an obstacle for him. And also Hairu would certainly be able to fight without restrictions with her speed and agility. Again Ui shook his head.  
For such thoughts this was neither the time nor the place.  
Ui only noticed that he had held his breath when Hairu released his wrist.  
Under Ui's sandals the floor gave in with every step. How annoying. Sand had collected between the underside of his feet and the soles, rubbing hotly and grainy against his skin. Sometimes, when Ui took a step, shell fragments cracked under his feet.  
Dancing, Hairu walked through the sand. Bare feet. As if she would not be disturbed by all the sharp edges of the broken shells and the glowing hot underground. Hopefully she wouldn't cut herself somewhere. Only when they arrived directly at the water, where the ground was wet by the constant waves, Ui's footsteps become stable again.  
"Oh wow!" Hairu exclaimed and pointed to the sea, which spread out like a blue carpet in front of them, "It's so beautiful. Look, Koori, look!"  
Ui wasn't sure whether he had ever seen a blue like that. He had been to the sea before. With his parents. Or as part of school excursions. But back then, the water had been of a dirty gray.  
Or maybe it was just how he felt.  
Soon it was Hairu's birthday, Ui had thought about giving her a necklace and had already been to several jewellery shops. He was particularly struck by a pendant with a glittering azure-blue gem.  
So sparkling as the sea in front of them. Hairus eyes shone. Ui wanted to wait until he found a better present. But now he was sure that he wanted to give her this pendant in the color of the sea.  
Hopefully he'd see this particular glow in her eyes again. On tiptoes and with outstretched arms she tripped into the water. She squeaked, held her hand in front of her mouth and laughed.  
"Cold! It's so cold, Koori! "But the cold did not stop her from wading deeper into the water until it reached her ankles. The white spray was stuck to her calves. She put her head up on the back of her neck.  
"Oh, that feels good," she sighed, and then she turned to him. "Come on! It's not that cold at all."  
"If you think so…” Ui approached only carefully. Who knew what was in the water? Admittedly, it was clear enough that he could look on the ground and therefore it was probably safe. As long as he or Hairu didn't cut themselves on any sharp objects or get stung by a jellyfish...A wave rolled to the beach. Hairu laughed, tried to jump over it.  
The surge washed Ui's feet. Cold shivers crawled up his legs. Licking, the water withdrew, leaving white foam on his bare feet. The next wave was already surrounding his feet. The water was rushing. Something cold and wet hit his shirt, splashed in his face. Salt was burning in his eyes. Drops of water ran down his cheeks. Prustling, Ui wiped his face and his eyes - he felt as if acid had been dripped into them. Hairu laughed.  
"Sorry, Koori", she gasped for air, "You were absent, I couldn't help it!" "Shit, Hairu", Ui rubbed his eyes again. Everything was still burning, but finally he could see again. Hairu she held both hands in front of her mouth, but she could not keep her laughter captive.  
"I'm sorry, Koori, but your face... sorry!" Her continued laughter didn't make it any more credible. At school, many of the other children had enjoyed teasing each other, throwing mud or leaves at each other on the playground. His father had said, "Don't get involved in such childish stuff, Koori." Childish stuff - but he had been a child himself.  
"Don't get dirty or we'll have to wash everything and you'll just get us in trouble." "You're not like that."  
"Don't go down to such a level."  
When one of his classmates threw dirt or dead leaves at him, he could only stand irritated, undecided what to do. He couldn't tell if his classmate wanted to play with him or harass him. In the end, he just stared at the dirty spot on his school uniform, turned around and sat down on a bench, far away from the children playing and read the book his father had bought him.  
"Buffers."  
"Spoilsport!"  
"Arrogant little puppy!"  
That's how the other kids talked about him. Soon Ui got the feeling that it was no longer an invitation to play if you threw him off with dirt.  
"You don't have to bother with children like that. If they have fun with something like this, it'll show where it's going to lead. They will just behave the same way in adulthood."  
Ui stared at the big stain on his shirt, the saltwater soaked fabric stuck itchy to his skin. Not to give down to the "level"? What "level" did his parents even speak of? Who should measure people? And measured in or against what? None of that mattered.  
No, he wouldn't turn around anymore.  
Ui stepped a little deeper into the water until it reached his bare calves. Then he bent down, formed his hands into a bowl, dunked them into the water...and pushed a gush in Hairus direction.  
"Ew, Koori," she laughed screaming as the splashing water hit her, "Prepare for revenge!" For her part, she sprayed him with cold water. Ui resisted, Hairu evaded, replied to his attack. Ui didn't know how long their game went on. He barely felt the cold of the water with his cheeks glowing hot. He could feel his smile.  
Smiling - that was something that was always difficult for him. You could win people over with a smile. Much is easier when you smile a lot. Whenever he tried, however, it felt forced, stiff, it literally pulled in his face.  
But whenever he was with Hairu, it was suddenly easy. All by itself. It was only now that Ui realized he was smiling.  
He couldn't remember when he started it. The waves roared, surrounded them. Hairu was already so deep in the water that it reached her knees and a part of her dress was already completely soaked. At first she had tried to hold up the hem, but as she had to have both hands free to splash water on Ui, the dryness of the dress soon lost its priority. Suddenly Hairu came running towards Ui with her arms outstretched.  
Instinctively, Ui wanted to retreat, but Hairu had already wrapped her arms around him, pressing her delicate body against him with all its weight. "Hairu! What are you doing?" he groaned. Ui staggered backwards.  
In the water and on the muddy ground he found no support. Hairu also slipped away and clung to him all the more.  
But that didn't exactly help him regain his balance. Rather, Hair's weight tore him down only stronger. Wave after wave broke his legs, as if they wanted to help to knock him down for good.  
"Oops!" he heard Hairu say.  
Then they landed splashing in the water. It clapped and splashed. Ui landed back to front in the water.  
He felt Hair's weight on his chest. The back of his head sank into the wet sand, burning water washed around his face. Panting and snorting, Ui came up. Salt burned in his eyes, his nose, his throat. Hairu had clung to his shoulders with her hands. She squatted between his legs. She wasn't laughing. Her face was suddenly serious. "Oh dear, I really didn't want to, Koori." "It's all right, it's my fault," he wiped his face. The waves bumped against their bodies gently as if to mock them both.  
Everything was wet. His pants, his underpants. His skin. His shirt. His hair. Hairus dress. Hairu’s sun bonnet. Hairu’s hair, in which drops of water hung like little pearls.  
How dark the soft pink was when it was wet...although coldness crawled up in Ui, warm showers went through him - so he was strangely warm inside.  
The water splashed as Hairu stood up. She reached her hand – shining with wetness – to Ui. For a moment, he looked up at her. Hesitated. Then he grabbed her hand and Hairu pulled him up from the waves.  
"We should get back to the car," explained Ui, after getting out of the water and standing a few steps further along the coast, "otherwise we'll catch a cold."  
Hairu pushed the lower lip forward.  
"Awww…Too bad... I was so excited..."  
"Be reasonable. I don't want you to get sick."  
"I won't get sick! See what I mean? The sun dries everything very quickly."  
Hairu turned on the spot, the heavy, dripping fabric of her dress flapping. The warm rays of the sun tickled Ui's skin. "We'll definitely catch a cold," Ui explained anyway, "but we may career along the water on the way back, okay? That's still a long way off." He couldn't bear to see her so sad. But to know that she would be ill because of this trip was something he could bear even less.  
Hairu smiled happily again.  
"Okay! Thank you, Koori! “  
They walked along the coastline.  
While Ui walked on the sand and would hardly dare to take another step into this hellish ocean, Hairu walked a few steps next to him in the water.  
But she was still so close to him that the sea did not even completely cover her feet. All wet... how he would have liked a cigarette now.  
He knew he'd forgotten something. Ui tried hard not to make a face. His dripping hair stuck to his head, to his cheeks. With every step, the wet fabric of his clothes sucked itself onto his skin in a new, unpleasant way. Ui shuddered, he had goose bumps.  
Maybe he should have put on something longer as clothing. With the knee-length trousers and the short-sleeved, loose T-shirt and the sandals he had felt much too naked anyway and silly at that. He had almost forgotten that he even owned such kind of clothing at all...Even when he met Hairu privately in the city, he had tried to dress as respectably as possible. White shirt, black waistcoat, black pants, black patent shoes. However, this had been anything but appropriate for a visit to the beach.  
And even if he had put on something longer, it would have just got wet in the end and even more fabric would stick disgustingly to him. Nevertheless, the cold, the sand under his feet and the sun's rays warmed his skin. Hairu walked beside him with jumpy steps, she let her slender arms swing.  
With each gentle impact of her feet the water splashed quietly. She hummed quietly. Luckily she had fun. Despite her disappointment that they had to stop the trip prematurely...damn it, he had wanted her to be happy. Well, if she hadn't been so silly, they could have stayed longer. Damn, that sounded like something his father would say. Ui shook his head.  
"Is something wrong, Koori?" Hairu asked suddenly. Ui blinked. Then he smiled. "It's all good, don't worry about it." Hairu blew out her cheeks, almost looked at him suspiciously. But then she looked at him with a gentle expression on her face.  
Suddenly, darkness floated in her eyes. How he hated to see her like that.  
"Is it because we have to leave early because of me?" she asked.  
Most of the time it seemed like Hairu was just living in her own world...but on the other hand....  
"No, no," Ui cleared his throat, "I just thought it was a pity for you because you were so happy and I'm quite a spoilsport right now."  
Hairu laughed. "Sometimes you really are." ...that wasn't exactly what he wanted to hear. "But not today! Not at all! I had such a good time! The sea's great and I could go with you too! And you're just worried, I don't want us to get sick too. We would not be able to work anymore after all. Thank you Koori, for a beautiful day!"  
Heat spread to Ui's cheeks, while he was staring at the wet sand and rubbing his neck.  
"No need to thank me for that," he mumbled.  
When he looked up again, Hairu had disappeared. One look over his shoulder and he found her. A few steps away from him she squatted, her hands dipped in the water.  
Typical for Hairu.  
"What are you doing?" In response Hairu jumped up and ran towards him, she held something small tight to her chest. The water under her feet splashed excitedly. "Look here, Koori!" She reached out her hands to him. Two large shells lay on her palms. A large pink one with white speckles, a large piece had broken out at the top, water shimmered in the grooves. The other shell was very smooth and shiny black.  
"They look like you and me," Hairu exclaimed.  
Blinking, Ui looked at the shells. "Yeah, that's right."  
Hairu held the pink shell to her ear. "You can hear the sea. So maybe now I can hear the real sea", she laughed and held out the mussel to him, "Here you go".  
Once again Ui blinked. "Please?"  
"As a souvenir for today! ", Hairu explained with a smile, "It doesn't make sense for me to have my shell and you to have yours - I want to remember that I spent the day with you and I want you to remember me. So take it!"  
But she would surely prefer the pink shell...and still she gave it to him and voluntarily kept the black one...because of him.  
Because she wanted to remember him. Ui swallowed the lump down his throat. Carefully, with his fingertips Ui reached for the shell. He stroke over the surface with his thumb and felt the grooves.  
"Thank you", he smiled at Hairu and let the shell slide in his trouser pocket, where it was safe. Hairu also kept her black shell in the pocket of her dress. The sea roared and splashed as they made their way to the car together.  
In the end, they kept going and going.  
Keep going through the sand, keep going straight. They had long since missed the path to the parking lot and had forgotten the time.  
Time, the wet clothes, nothing but themselves did matter anymore.  
The warm rays of the sun dried the fabric quickly. Cold water was playing around Ui's feet. Hairu was humming next to him.  
"If we keep on walking," she asked at some point, "will we come to the end of the world? Or are we just walking in circles?"  
Ui just shook his head. At the end it was a rock wall, where the waves broke gurgling, which cut off their way.  
While they really returned to the car this time, the sun was already swallowed by the sea. The water was red.  
As if the red sun was liquefying and leaked into the sea. Like a sea of blood. "Beautiful, isn't it, Koori? The water looks like liquid rubies," enthused Hairu.  
"Yes," Ui said, "maybe."  
That she could still see the beauty of the world... Maybe a sea of blood, maybe liquid rubies. In the end, it was just water reflecting rays of light. There was no point in thinking about it.  
It started to get chilly. Ui got goose bumps on his arms and legs again. Hairu rubbed her naked arms and laughed.  
"Pretty cold."  
He would have loved to put a jacket on her - but of course he hadn't brought one with him. How could he not have thought of that?  
Before they left, Hairu gave the beach one last, longing look. She sighed, and then smiled at Ui.  
"Thanks for a great day!"  
Ui nodded while his heart started beating higher again. Just said "no need to say thank you," even if it didn't in the least embrace his feelings.  
No, some feelings weren't anything you could even begin to express in words.  
"Can we come back sometime? It was so beautiful," Hairu asked and looked at Ui with radiance, red reflexes of the last rays of the sun flashing in her tender pink eyes. Ui nodded again. "Absolutely." Then Hairu clapped her hands.  
"Great!" After the rough, hot sand, the concrete floor of the parking lot felt unusually cold and hard. Over radiant, bright blue sky a colourful gradient had settled. Hairu liked to paint and now the sky looked as if she had randomly, but not aimlessly, taken blue, pink, yellow, dark blue and black watercolor and scattered them over the canvas.  
Right, he had once seen a picture of her that looked so similar. The first stars appeared on the firmament. The lights on Ui's car flashed when he unlocked it with the remote locking system. A few steps later they were already standing at the vehicle. Ui had opened the driver's door and wanted to get in. Then his gaze fell on Hairu, who had put her head in the neck and pointed to the sky.  
"Quick, Koori! A shooting star! This time for real! Look, look!" Ui looked up and just saw a small streak burning up. "Did you see it?" Hairu asked hastily, "Please say you saw it?"  
"Yes, I did."  
Why was Hairu so upset?  
"I'm so happy! Well, we both could have wished for something! But don't say anything, otherwise the wish won't come true," Hairu exclaimed, "I also wanted something, but I'm not saying that either." She laid her index finger conspiratorially on her lips. What had she wished for?  
Arima’s Quinque? To be praised by Arima? Something like, that was for sure.  
"You wished for something too, didn't you, Koori? Or is that too childish for you? “  
Ui faltered. No. Making a wish at a shooting star was indeed childish. Hairu had a perfect idea of him.  
Making wishes to a shooting star was no good. Only oneself was responsible for ones own destiny. Only you could determine your own path. A rock that burned up in the atmosphere had nothing to do with it.  
"Yes, I wished for something," Ui heard him say anyway, felt his fingers wander into the pocket of his trousers.  
Under his fingers he felt the grooves of the shell, which Hairu had given him. “That's beautiful, Koori! I hope your wish comes true! But shhht, don't say anything."  
No, he wouldn't say anything. Hairu would laugh at him for sure.  
I wish we could be together forever.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you so much for reading!


End file.
